Review: Suzie Toot’s SUZIE WITH A Z Is a Star-Making Solo Debut at City Winery

There's a very specific kind of electricity that happens when a room full of people have traveled a long way to see one person shine. That was the air at City Winery on July 8, where Suzie Toot opened Suzie, with a Z, her first-ever solo tour in New York City. The show was sold out. And it wasn’t just a New York crowd. For many it was a pilgrimage.

Toot made her entrance like a glamour queen beamed in from a hundred years ago, shedding a stunning coat to reveal a red gown that would make both Liza Minnelli (the woman she credits with lighting her performing fire) and Bob Mackie sit up a little straighter.

In the beginning, she said the goal of the show was to know her better by the end. What followed was a whirlwind through a life that contains multitudes. Toot took us on a journey through her origins at Monkey Business in Fort Lauderdale, her tenure on Drag Race, her travels around the world, her budding relationship with The Muppets, a performance that earned the title of the demonic Betty Bop (a nickname I am now obsessed with), her move to New York City, and a tour-de-force force journey through her dream roles that made the entire room lose its collective mind. It was a cabaret debut, sure. But it was also a history lesson. A loving excavation of songs most rooms have forgotten, threaded in among standards everybody could leave humming. 

And that's the trick of it: nothing in this show felt like filler, and nothing felt like standard cabaret fare. Every song belonged to Suzie.

The standouts came fast and often. Her Ruth Etting turn on "Mean to Me" was magnificent. Her "Somewhere That's Green" — I would happily put on repeat. "The Entertainer" was unexpected and hilarious (and educational!). “Jazz Fever" was sultry and captivating. "Take Me Back to Manhattan,” a tender little valentine to her boyfriend, was beautiful. "I Wanna Be Bad" was, obviously, perfect. The "Over the Rainbow"/"Rainbow Connection" was an absolute chef’s kiss. And "Brother, Can You Spare a Dime?" —all I can say is yaaaaaasssss, queen.

I would be committing a BroadwayWorld felony if I failed to single out her dream roles section. This, my friends, is where Suzie Toot planted a flag. Her "Funny Honey" from Chicago, punctuated by an audience member supplied (cold read) Amos monologue was a masterclass in comic timing and command of a room. Truly, an honest-to-God showstopper. Chicago, take notice — there's a new Roxie in town.  Her "I'm a Brass Band" from Sweet Charity was every bit as electric.

Suzie is charming, beautiful, funny, and stacked with talent. But she has that other thing, too — the thing you can't teach. Likability. Real, bone-deep likability. She's quick to laugh at herself, quicker to bring the audience in on the joke, and somewhere between the twist of a hip and the bat of a lash she manages to be both sexy and innocent at once, half 1920s showgirl, half cartoon, entirely herself. It's a magical combination.

Beyond the undeniable talent, what struck me most was Suzie's relationship with her audience. People flew and drove in from other cities to be in that room on opening night. And a good number of them told me they're following the tour to their own hometowns next. That's not fandom you can manufacture. That's the result of the kindness that made me (and clearly so many others) fall for Suzie on Drag Race in the first place. She’s a performer who leads with her heart no matter what's thrown at her. That's what fills a room at City Winery on a Wednesday. And that's what's going to fill spaces a whole lot bigger...very soon.

The show closed to a riotous standing ovation, and rightly so. In a world overflowing with copycats and cookie-cutter queens, Suzie Toot is a true original. How refreshing.

There's something so special about watching a genuinely good person live out their dream in real time. Suzie is kind, gracious, funny, and every bit what her fans hope she'll be.

I can sum my thougfhts on the evening up in one line. Suzie Toot is queer joy, fully embodied, and New York is lucky it got a night with her.

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Suzie, with a Z continues on tour. Learn more and grab tickets here. And if your local stop offers a meet-and-greet upgrade, do yourself a favor and get it.

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